The SSO Garage Round Up: June 2023

I’ve had a few questions recently on what’s currently in our garage.  As a result, I figured it was about time to do another quick round up on the current residents and plans.  I was going through a bunch of old pictures from a decade plus ago and one thing I did notice is we tended to turn over cars much more frequently back then.  Don’t know if its old age, laziness, or I’ve just gotten better at choosing cars that I am going to really bond with, but the average term in the garage these days is significantly longer.  All the “6 monthers” are gone and 2 years now is a relatively short stay.  In order of oldest to most recent acquisition:

Ferrari F40

We have owned the F40 since 2006.  It’s been with us for multiple moves across both sides of the Atlantic.  I get as much pleasure and excitement out of driving it today as the first time I got behind the wheel years ago in Kassel, Germany.  The F40 is currently off for its annual service which this year includes new fuel tanks.  We are also upgrading the brakes from steel to ceramic (sourced from DK Engineering in the UK).  The brakes have always been a weak spot on the F40 and these should transform the car.  I hope to have the F40 back in a week or two and will report back on the brake upgrade then. 

 

Maserati Granturismo Cabrio

The Granturismo arrived in our garage back in 2014.  It’s very hard to believe it is almost 10 years old now.  The Granturismo is Mrs. SSO’s daily driver and has been absolutely flawless in terms of carrying out its daily duties.  It’s been completely reliable and service costs are quite reasonable.  It does have a tendency to eat rear tires but that might be more a reflection of Mrs. SSO’s driving style.  We have done a few road trips in the car including driving from Dallas to Boston and it is a great long distance cruiser.  I personally love the engine and it’s got one of the best sound tracks in the business.  It’s another car I don’t see us parting with anytime in the near future.

 

Porsche Cayenne S

The long serving family “truck” arrived in late 2014.  It spent the first several years in our ownership in Dallas which it did not seem to care for.  It had a number of reliability issues and we had to sink a fair amount of $$$ into it to get it right.  Since 2017 it has been based up in Montana and other than one problem for an electrical connection, it’s been terrific.  Of all the cars we own, the Cayenne S might just be the best in the snow.

McLaren 650S Spider

The 650S Spider was handed over to us in 2015 on the same day we also took delivery of the McLaren P1. The P1 lasted 2 years in the garage and the 650S Spider is going on 8 now.  The 650S Spider was my daily driver for 6 years until COVID put a fork in that use case.  Over the time we have owned it the 650S Spider has really been our “do everything” supercar as its be put through its paces in a very wide range of situations from Home Depot runs to commuting to  road trips to heavy city traffic.  Of our McLaren’s, it’s also the one Mrs. SSO prefers to drive as it’s the most “civilized”.  These days the 650S Spider is the car of choice for short road trips and transport to local events.  Its full maintenance and reliability history is posted: Our McLaren Maintenance History

 

McLaren 675LT Spider

The brilliant 675LT Spider landed in our driveway in 2016.  It’s led an exciting and full life having lived in Texas, Montana, Connecticut, and Massachusetts.  The 675LT Spider does so many things so well and after 7 years together, I do believe it is the best, most complete, car McLaren Automotive has produced to date.  Next to the F40, it is my favorite and has been so for quite some time.  The 675LT Spider has been completely reliable and we have certainly put it through its paces both climbing mountains and covering long distances.  Its long term spot in the garage is very secure.

 

Porsche 911 (997.2) GT3 RS

The GT3 RS arrived in early 2017.  It spent its first year and a half with us based in Dallas which was just the wrong environment for it.  It wasn’t until I moved the GT3 RS up to the mountains of Montana in the summer of 2018 that I really started to bond with the Porsche and appreciate its brilliance.  It’s a car that demands your full attention when you are behind the wheel and you need to be fully engaged to get the best out of it.  The GT3 RS is a highly capable car with a very low level of forgiveness should you get it wrong.  In many ways it’s the last (and perhaps the best) of the great analogue 911s and at this point, I wouldn’t trade it in, even for a Carrera GT. 

Mercedes-Benz ML550

The ML550 was an early 2017 acquisition and has been based up in Big Sky, Montana since we acquired it. Its great in the snow and other than a clogged air filter after it was driven for over an hour on a very dusty dirt road, it has been completely trouble free.  The big 402 bhp V8 engine moves it quite smartly up the steep mountain roads where other SUVs seem to struggle a bit.

 

McLaren Senna

We took delivery of the Senna in mid 2019.  It was the final car we acquired when we lived in Texas.  The Senna is the closest thing to a 21st century F40 that I have driven.  It is mad, wild, raw, and mind-bendingly fast.  In many ways it delivers a very similar driving experience to the P1 with significantly fewer of the P1s ownership maintenance headaches.  While the design got a lot of negative feedback at launch, I do believe its aging well and will continue to do so. 

 

Mercedes-Benz GLS450

The big SUV was a late 2019 arrival.  It splits its time between Montana and Massachusetts and more than proved itself on the drive west last winter: 3 Days Across America The build quality on both the ML550 and GLS450 is outstanding. 

McLaren 765LT Spider

The 765LT Spider landed in early 2022.  It’s a car I had been waiting for since the 720S Coupe was first shown back in 2017.  In the relatively short time we have owned the 765LT Spider, I can say it was definitely worth the wait.  The car is brilliant.  In terms of performance, it is 90% of the McLaren Elva in a far more usable package (and I am a fan of the Elva).  We will be taking the 765LT Spider on a major road trip in July which will be a great opportunity to gain a much deeper appreciation of its capabilities.  My early assessment is the 765LT Spider could give the 675LT Spider a run for its money as the best McLaren so far, but we need a few more years together before making this call.  The 765LT Spider will definitely be with us long term.

 

Maserati Quattroporte Q4

We added the highly capable Quattroporte Q4 in early 2022.  It arrived with a very specific use care of “long distance commuter” with the horrible mission of having to pound up and down I95 between Boston and New York City.  For long distance driving, it’s hard to imagine a better, more comfortable, choice.  Other than an ApplePlay update and one bad sensor that needed to be replaced, it’s been trouble free.  As the original use case for the Quattroporte is now gone, how much longer it stays with us is a bit of an open question.  However, it continues to prove its usefulness every time we need more than 2 seats but not the size or space of an SUV.

 

Range Rover P38 “Layer Cake”

In a fit of insanity, I bought a 20 year old Range Rover last fall.  Friends warned that it would lead to financial ruin but so far, “Layer Cake” (see Movie: Layer Cake ) has been terrific.  Work on it so far has involved replacing the rear tailgate struts and battery.  That’s it!  It gets used for local errands, hauling stuff to the boat, and taking the dogs to the beach.  Handling is definitely “boat like” and the brakes are “squishy”.  Despite this it does have a certain charm and is fun to drive around the countryside.

 

On Order: SCG 004S

We do have an SCG 004S on order.  Details on the car are posted: SCG 004S  At this point we are just waiting for notification on our build slot.

 

Summary

Adding it all up, we have 4 McLarens, 2 Maseratis, 2 Porsches, 2 Mercedes, 1 Ferrari, and 1 Range Rover.  Cut another way its 2 hypercars, 3 supercars, 2 sports cars, 4 suvs, & 1 sedan.  Out of the group, 4 are convertibles and 8 are “fixed roof’.  The group is split over two main locations, and several spend time in both depending on our plans that year.  Out of the 12, nine have been with us for more than two years now.  Of the three more recent acquisitions, one I can see being with us for a very long time and the two others will likely depart in the next year or two.

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June 2023

 

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